


Little Talks

by pictureofdoriangay



Category: The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Fluff, Idk what im even doing, M/M, Mention of frank castle/sarah lieberman and david/sarah but thats all, Some angst about coming out i guess, They support each other idk, i guess, takes place in season 1 sometime after the dick episode buy before the season finale
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-12
Updated: 2018-01-12
Packaged: 2019-03-03 18:19:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13346844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pictureofdoriangay/pseuds/pictureofdoriangay
Summary: David and Frank share secrets over a drink. David lets slip something he's not sure Frank will react so well to.





	Little Talks

**Author's Note:**

> Frank and David have more in common than they thought, apparently.

David didn't know when they'd started sharing secrets like this. He thought it happened one day because Frank was feeling guilty or vulnerable and opened up to him in a dazzling display of depth of emotion that had left David feeling vaguely misty-eyed and a lot more... sympathetic? Closer to Frank, maybe? At any rate, they hadn't really stopped, and in between their bickering and life-threatening missions, the two of them took turns sharing really personal stories over a meal or a drink. They would talk about their wives and their families, a new story every time, learning a little more about one another and, frankly, being surprised every time. They were very different people, but they found they had a lot in common.

This time, they were talking over some scotch Frank had picked up from the store on the way home from helping Sarah with some bad wiring. He always brought an offering home with him after he visited her now, which David figured was sort of an apology-- "sorry I'm too sexy and your wife is falling in love with me, here's something nice for your trouble." Yeah, thanks, man. That makes it all better. This time, David had watched, face close to the screen, as his wife had leaned against a wall, watching his best friend from an ideal position behind his athletic figure as he helped David's daughter learn how to be handy and useful. Something that, even if David had been there for them, he wouldn't have been able to do. He watched his wife's posture as she clearly tried to hint at her feelings for Frank--Pete--and Frank gently but--reluctantly?? David was certainly suspicious--let her down. At least he left without kissing her this time. David blushed slightly as he recalled the whole "I'm hung like a moose" incident and puffed off to tinker with a drone. 

He was still sulking when Frank got home, carrying a paper bag of groceries, and he was still sulking when Frank popped open the bottle of scotch and poured David a glass. 

"Sarah made some spaghetti. Here." He handed David a Tupperware container of pasta. 

David sighed. "I don't think she cooked this much for me." Frank rested a warm hand on his shoulder, and David loosened up. He really couldn't blame Sarah. Frank had a way about him.

So they drank, and David ate pasta, and they talked. Just chat at first, and David did most of the work. Frank wasn't too good at small talk. But once they'd had enough to drink, the conversation started getting personal again. David wanted to know if there was anyone before Maria. 

"What, like was I a virgin when we met? No, man."

David laughed softly. "I don't know, you could have fooled me, as chaste as you are now."

"Nah, I was a wild kid. I was a violent little shit and I--I dunno. Before Maria, I had that whole macho thing going on--"

"Yeah, *before* Maria," David grumbled. Frank raised his eyebrows before continuing.

"I guess I was kind of a dog for a little while. That changed when I met Maria. I'm glad it did."

David chewed his lip thoughtfully. He was deep in thought and accidentally gazed at Frank for too long, making him shift in his seat."

"Well?" Came the gruff syllable. 

"Well, what?" David asked, realizing he'd been staring and looking away quickly.

"Well, what about you?" Frank seemed bitter to ask. Usually, David would have just offered his story on his own.

"Uh... well, like I said before, I was a bit of a player."

"Hm. I remember. And, uh, hung like a moose, yeah?"

David blushed. He didn't usually bring up that night. Dumbass

"Right."

Frank chuckled around some scotch. "Anyone serious, before Sarah?" He asked. Maybe he thought he was saving David from an awkward moment. David looked at his shoes.

"Uh... I mean, one or two."

When he looked back up again, Frank's dark eyes were questioning. David couldn't hold up under that gaze when he was considering saying what he was currently considering saying. He was red, he could feel it.

"That wasn't supposed to be a hard question. Sorry for asking," Frank said, voice low, worried he'd touched on a sore subject.

"No, no." David's voice might have gone up an octave or two. "I just... yeah," he caught on the words, taking another drink to stall. "There were... one or two--people I was serious with. Y'know."

Frank's head tilted to the side. He looked as if he were trying to decode a secret message. *Shit,* he'd said too much. Frank was a marine. He wasn't exactly your typical all- American guy, but he was a marine to the bone. David didn't know how he would react to information like this. He quickly tried to think of something to change the subject, but before he could speak, he heard a short, curt, gravelly, "ah" from Frank. David's eyes snapped up, and Frank looked like he had gotten the hidden message loud and clear. *Shit.*

"So, like... people. As in--what, guys?"  
Uncomfortable and exaggerated laughter burst from David's chest. "Oh--y'knoooow. Just, like, in college. Nothing, uh--"

"Serious? You just said it was." 

"No, I just meant, um..." Ok, this was a mistake. Time to panic? David checked Frank's expression again. He looked wry. David tried to backpedal. 

"Whoa, hey man, I'm not..." Frank held up a hand, palm open and facing David. "You're good. Calm down."

"Right, right, ok. I'm calm, it's nothing, I just. I don't know why I would tell you something like that." 

"Beats me. So, college. Experimenting?"  
David laughed again. What kind of question was that?

"Not really. I didn't need to experiment to know..."

"To know?"

David cleared his throat. "Uh, that I'm bi, I guess."

Frank was pouring another drink. He definitely looked uncomfortable. He didn't seem to know how to respond to that. David had gone from panicked to amused, now that he knew he wasn't in any immediate danger from this revelation. He wasn't gonna jump in and save Frank from this.

"Well, I, uh, never went to college, but..."

David's eyebrows shot into the stratosphere. "But what?" He almost shouted in his surprise.

Frank looked panicked this time. "Nothing," he said, voice extra-gruff. 

"No, no, no, wait," David couldn't keep the excitement and humor out of his voice. He regretted it when he saw Frank looking wounded. "No, hey, it's ok. I mean--obviously, you don't have to say anything you don't want to. But I *did* just spill the beans, and that is *not* the response I was expecting. I-- I mean, you can tell me. If you want to." He desperately wanted him to want to. 

Frank was making an uncertain "hmmmmmmmm" sound. "Uh... There was this one, this one guy, I guess." He was *very* red. 

"Seriously?" David bounced in his seat. Frank sighed. 

"Hey, look, I'm not... I don't--*know,* I'm not sure like you are or anything. It was one guy, it's not like I'm-- I don't--"

"--yeah, of course. That's fine. That's ok, you're good man." Frank's gaze did that little thing he did, where he looked up, eyes soft, and away quickly. David didn't know why he was so happy about this. He just--who would have thought? Frank Fucking Castle. Wow.

"That's uh, yeah. Wow. What was his name?" 

Frank let out a little laugh. "Maybe some other time. I'm gonna sleep." He hauled himself out of his chair and moved past David, briefly resting that comforting hand on his shoulder again, his touch seeming warmer this time, somehow.


End file.
